ArticleDeutsches Arzteblatt international2022
Sedatives and Sedation at the End of Life in the Hospital.
Article in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- The decision-making process for sedation in specialist palliative care: a qualitative interview study with team members, relatives, and patients.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Refractory symptoms and end of life midazolam use in cancer patients, a single center experience.Palliative & supportive care · 2025Article
- "Is this sedation?" - a Group Delphi process to define cut-off doses and dosing intervals for potentially sedating drugs in palliative care.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- Palliative sedation at the end of life: prevalence, characteristics and possible determinants.BMC palliative care · 2024Article
- Sedation in Palliative Care—a Clinically Oriented Overview of Guidelines and Treatment RecommendationsDeutsches Arzteblatt international · 2023Article
- Palliative Sedation: Controversial Discussions and Appropriate Practice.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundData on sedation at the end of life (eol) in different medical disciplines are scarce and mostly based on subjective reports. We aimed to assess the use of sedatives with continuous effect in the last week of life and associated factors in different hospital departments, with the aid of objectifiable criteria.
methodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study based on the medical records of patients who died in one of five clinical departments of German hospitals between January 2015 and December 2017 (hematology/oncology [two different departments], neurology, geriatrics, and gynecology). The use of sedatives that are recommended in guidelines for palliative sedation was analyzed, irrespective of indication and treatment intent, with the aid of published definitions of continuous effect and of at least moderately sedating doses. The analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression analysis.
results260/517 (50%) of the patients who died were given sedatives with continuous effect in the last week of life, 53/517 (10%) in at least moderately sedating doses. For 76/260 (29%) patients, no indication was noted. The term "sedation" was used in the medical records of 20/260 (8%) patients. The use of sedatives with continuous effect was significantly associated with the department in which the patient was treated (hematology/oncology II: OR 0.32, 95% CI [0.16: 0.63]; geriatrics: OR 0.23, 95% CI [0.10:0.50]; reference, hematology/oncology I).
conclusionIt was not possible to draw a clear distinction between the use of sedatives for symptom control, without sedating effect or intent to sedate, and intentional sedation to relieve suffering. The observed differences between hospital departments and deviations from recommended practice, e.g. lack of documentation of the indication, warrant further exploration. Moreover, context-specific supportive measures for the use of sedatives and sedation at the end of life should be developed.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.